Samuel was furious. Moments ago, Stephen was still in critical condition and fighting for his life, so he had to hold back his anger. Now that the danger has passed, he no longer restrained himself.

He raised his voice, demanding, “What’s the deal with Stephen’s pursuer? Our child never provoked her, yet she resorted to kidnapping and stabbing. This is utterly lawless!”

After a moment of silence, Ralph turned to Tessa, his gaze sharp.

“Tessa, what happened on the rooftop? How did Stephen get injured?”

Tessa lowered her head. “It’s all my fault.”

Sophia quickly looked at her. “Tessa, what do you mean by that?”

Tessa recounted the event in its entirety.

Rowena spoke in a reproachful tone, “So Stephen took that knife for you?”

Tessa pressed her lips together. “Yes.”

Rowena was displeased. “Tessa, you were too impulsive. We had already called for the cops, and there were bodyguards at the manor. Couldn’t you have waited a bit longer? If not for your rash actions, Stephen wouldn’t have been injured for no reason.”

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Jacobson Senior. It’s all my fault,” Tessa said in a strained voice, bowing her head even lower.

Rowena pressed further, “You haven’t even entered the family, yet you’ve caused such a disaster.”

Samuel’s face darkened. “Rowena, what do you mean by that? It was clearly Stephen who attracted the trouble. My daughter is the victim here. How dare you blame her?”

Samuel coldly added, “It’s easy for you to say that she should’ve just waited. That woman kidnapped my youngest daughter, held a knife to her neck, and even threatened to kill Seline if Tessa didn’t go. And you’re making your judgment from a safe distance?”

Samuel sneered. “Bodyguards? Since you mentioned bodyguards, let me ask, are the Jacobson family bodyguards just for show?

“In broad daylight, they let a woman

easily kidnap Seline. Were your bodyguards there to save lives or to collect corpses? Seline is Tessa’s dearest sister. In such a situation, Tessa’s urgency to save her sister becomes her fault?”

Samuel was truly pissed. Not only was the engagement banquet ruined, but his youngest daughter was kidnapped, and his older daughter had nearly been killed in an attempt to save her. Yet, as victims, they were being blamed. Such absurdity was intolerable

Not giving others a chance to speak, he continued questioning Rowena, “You accuse Tessa of being impulsive. If your son were the one kidnapped today, with a knife to his neck, would you have remained caim?

“And don’t say Stephen took the

knife for Tessa. Are you implying the knife should have stabbed my

daughter instead? This is truly

absurd The culprit is right there

you’re blaming my daughter, ts the Jacobson family a believer in viêtim-blaming?”

Ralph coughed twice.

“Samuel, calm down. This matter is indeed not Tessa’s fault.” Ralph’s sharp gaze swept over Rowena.

“What nonsense are you spouting? How can you be so unreasonable?”

Enraged, Rowena began to breathe heavily. “Fine! Now you’re blaming me. I won’t argue with you anymore!”

She turned and left in a huff.

“Samuel, don’t be too angry. This incident was indeed due to our negligence.” Ralph spoke reasonably.

Samuel took a deep breath to calm himself. With a cold expression, he said, “Since Stephen is fine now, I will take my leave. Seline is still shaken, so I need to check on her.”

Ralph nodded and instructed Caleb to show Samuel the way out.

Tessa wanted to check on Stephen, but Samuel’s face was stern. “Tessa, come home with me. If anything happens to Stephen later, they will blame you again.”

His words made the Jacobsons’ expressions change. Rowena’s earlier comments had indeed

disheartened the Yates family, leaving the others at a loss for words.

Tessa turned to look, her face filled with hesitation. “Dad…’